Odisha’s Coastal Erosion: Measures to Save Lives and Livelihoods

The Union government informed the Rajya Sabha that about 28% of Odisha’s 564-km coastline is under erosion, based on an NCCR assessment of shoreline changes during 1990–2022.Around 28.3% of the coastline is eroding, 17.6% is stable and 54.1% is witnessing accretion.

Shoreline Change in Odisha

• Shoreline change is the shifting boundary between land and water caused by waves, tides, storms, sea-level rise and human activities.
• Port construction, unplanned infrastructure, sand mining, seawalls, breakwaters and jetties can significantly alter shoreline and beach morphology.
• Odisha’s high exposure to cyclones and extreme coastal events makes its shoreline particularly vulnerable to erosion.
• Six major affected coastal districts are Ganjam, Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Bhadrak and Balasore.
• Jagatsinghpur has the highest erosion share at 47.6%, followed by Ganjam at 45.7% and Kendrapara at 45%.
• NCCR has identified several erosion-prone locations across these districts as “vulnerable stretches.”

Impact of Coastal Erosion

• Sea-level rise and coastal erosion have reportedly submerged 16 villages in Kendrapara, displacing hundreds of people.
• Coastal erosion has caused the loss of homes, agricultural land and traditional livelihoods in several vulnerable settlements.
• Podampeta village in Ganjam, once home to nearly 500 households, has largely been abandoned due to advancing seawater.
• Villages such as Ramayapatna in Ganjam are also facing landward movement of the sea and displacement of residents.

Measures Taken

• Odisha has developed a resettlement colony for erosion-affected people, described as India’s first climate-resettlement initiative of its kind.
• A geotextile-tube embankment is being developed at Pentha village in Kendrapara to reduce wave impact and coastal erosion.
• Geotextile tubes are sand-filled, high-strength porous synthetic structures used as artificial coastal barriers and seawalls.
• Sea wall-cum-service roads are being developed in parts of Balasore and at Ramayapatna beach in Ganjam.
• These dual-purpose structures act as coastal-defence barriers while also providing roads for local transport and public access.